Keeping your skin breakout-free by Angélique Gatsinzi

I am constantly getting compliments from people about my skin and in this article I hope to shed light on the basics of my facial skin regimen. Just a little disclaimer: if you have any skin conditions, you need to make an appointment with a qualified dermatologist who can assess your skin and make some medical recommendations. This article is simply a guide on what I do to make my skin stay breakout-free and I must also add that I have been fortunate enough to inherit a ‘good skin’ gene, but this doesn’t mean I don’t follow certain steps to ensure that I stay with good skin. As you get older it is necessary to pay attention to your skin care regimen because we start losing a lot of the suppleness and youthfulness of our skin, what with the stress of day to day life and sleepless nights.

What products do I use?

A lot of people tell me that using The Body Shop Bath Gloves on my facial skin is too harsh but to be honest, when I don’t use them I feel so icky. I need to feel like I have exfoliated all the dirt and dead skin! Living in the city means pollution from cars and buses, let’s not even talk about the amount of bacteria your face picks up on public transport every single day.

As a teenager up until my late-20s I used Garnier Pure Deep Pore Face Wash and quite frankly it’s one of the best drugstore brands I have used and still recommend. As a more mature woman however I thought maybe it was time to consider something less drugstore. I experimented with the more luxurious Clinique and Estee Lauder products but realized that sometimes the simpler the product the better it worked for me. I am currently loving the Body Shop Seaweed Deep Cleansing Facial Wash, this stuff is simply amazing for my skin, and since I started using it about six months ago I honestly cannot stop singing its praises. It leaves my skin feeling cleansed and not dried out. It is a wonderful product.

I think people really underestimate the necessity of moisturising! You have got to moisturize your face and you have to remember that the skin on your face and the skin on the rest of your body is not the same. So don’t think that smothering the leftovers of the lotion you just rubbed onto your legs will work. Buy a separate moisturizer for your face taking into consideration your skin type (oily around t-zone, dry etc.). I recently decided to try and minimize chemicals used on my skin so I opted for the Lush Cosmetics Imperialis Moisturizer, this moisturizer works for pretty much all skin types and it does a wonderful job of calming your skin and absorbing all that goodness that is packed inside.

Once in a while, when I feel my cheeks getting a bit dry, I exfoliate with the Lush Cosmetics Dark AngelsScrub which is packed with great ingredients like black sugar, charcoal, rhassoul mud, avocado oil and vegetable glycerine. My skin loves this product and the results are almost instant.

Tips and Tricks

Eat & drink healthy. When you smoke, eat and drink crap, it will show on your skin. When I eat a lot of roasted nuts (of any type) I get spots everywhere on my face, for others it’s chocolate. Try to cut down on processed foods, alcohol and sugar, opt for more food rich in vitamins A B C, omega-3, iron and beta-carotene. Drink a lot of water, to cleanse your insides and hydrate your skin. I love my vegetables, salmon and carrots – the best thing about these three is that you can toss them in one bowl and call it a salad!!!! Try to follow my motto, ‘by any greens necessary’.

Have one make-up free week a month. Personally, I wear make-up about once every two weeks, so this is not hard for me at all. But for all you regular make-up wearers, this is an opportunity to give your skin time to breathe, relax and rebuild. Make-up can clog up pores, and increase the levels of oil around the T-Zone. Lipgloss and mascara is fine to wear on make-up free days!

Clear your make-up bag of oldies. I know some people like to keep theirface creams, eye shadows, and blushes for years because they have been discontinued. I have seen girls scraping their lipstick tube with a toothpick three years after purchase. Girl you better be careful, because only God knows what the chemicals used to create that beauty product have morphed into a year after expiry. Don’t expose your skin to unnecessary damage. F.Y.I: The little open lid picture is an indication of how long you should keep your beauty products i.e. 12M = 12 months.

Get some fresh air. Whether this is when you go out for a jog in the morning or when you take the dog out for a walk, it doesn’t matter – the skin needs to breathe. I spend the whole day in front of a computer at work, during the winter I hardly see light at all because of the short days. Go get some of that Vitamin D.

Sleeping beauty. Yes you got that right. Sleep rejuvenates the skin! Not only does a lack of sleep result in you having bags big enough to fit my weekly shop, it causes sagginess and spots. Try to sleep early at least twice a week, or everyday if you can.

Smile like the whole world is watching. This is not a contest to find the person with the best gnashers. Not at all. This is about releasing the all important endorphins which increase the natural production of collagen. Thinking about it, I think this could be the secret behind my natural glow, I can never stop smiling!!!!